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I garnished my orange chocolate mousse with candied orange peels and you know me, I could not resist making my own candied orange peels. As it turns out, candied orange peels are actually pretty easy to make. It is really just as simple as peeling some oranges, slicing the peels, simmering them in water and sugar until tender, tossing them in sugar and letting them dry. Before simmering the peels in the water and sugar you can boil them in water one or more times to help reduce the bitterness. The final step of drying the peels is going to take a day or two so you need to keep that in mind when making the candied orange peels.

For something that is so easy to make, these candied orange peels are addictively good! Candied orange peels are a citrus lovers heaven and you can candy pretty much any citrus fruits peel that you like. The crunchy sugary coating wraps around the soft, sweet pure orange flavour creating a pleasant contrast in texture. If you think that candied orange peels are good all by themselves, and they are, then you have to try dipping them into a melted dark chocolate coating. Chocolate and orange is one of those classic flavour combinations and this is one of the best examples of it that I have ever had!

Candied Orange Peel

Directions:
1. Cut the top and bottom from the orange.
2. Cut the peel each orange into 4 vertical pieces and remove from orange in one piece.
3. Cut the peel into thin strips.
4. Bring a pot of water to boil, reduce the heat to medium and cook the peels in boiling water for 15 minutes, drain and rinse.
5. Bring the water and sugar to a boil over medium heat in a sauce pan.
6. Add the peel, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the peels are tender, about 45 minutes.
7. Drain and toss the peels in the sugar. Note: You want to drain the orange peels well. If you just throw them straight from the syrup into the sugar, the sugar will clump up. (Tip: Save the syrup and use it in ice tea.)
8. Place the peels on a cooling rack and let them sit until the coating is dry, anywhere from 24-48 hours.

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comments:

These really are delicious, and I was surprised that they weren't all that difficult when I tried them for Christmas. Yours are much nicer looking than mine were, though. I've been thinking about other citrus peel-chocolate combinations. Like lime and milk. Or grapefruit and white chocolate. So many possibilities.

Angie's Recipes: Though I have not tried candying pomelo peel I have seen candied pomelo peel. Because of the thickness of the skin I would definitely take the extra step and cut as much of the white pith from the skin as possible.

Anu Menon: The syrup will be pretty liquid-y. After you remove the orange peels you can continue to simmer the syrup to reduce it so that it thickens up if you want to use it for something else like a pancake syrup.

Thank you for the lovely recipe, I've always loved these, but had never thought to make them, and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was... almost as easy as eating them.I even used them to decorate my orange chocolate birthday cake, a wonderful touch http://naranjamorena.blogspot.com/2011/02/torta-de-panqueque-chocolate-naranja.html :D

This is just awesome. I tried it in my kitchen as soon as I read your post. It turned out real good. Thanks a lot for this simple and yum stuff! I'm from India and wish to post this in my blog with my cliks. Your name will find a place in my next post (saying a thankyou for the recipe)

My Dad has a tangerine tree, so I have tons of them. Some are as large as navel oranges. Can I use them in this recipe? Also, can I keep the peels for 3or 4 wks before making the recipe? If so... What is the best way! Will freezing them effect the outcome of the results? Thanks for any help....I want to give ad Christmas gifts. :)

Hi there! I'm trying out your recipe as we speak! I was wondering if there was any method to your chocolate melting for the orange peels. Do you just melt them over a bain-marie and then dip them, then wait for them to dry?

Also, was there any technique you used to make your peels straight instead of having them naturally curved?

I live in central America... SO HUMID! Will this affect the "drying" process too much? Normally things get wet and soft when left out. Is there anything I can do to make it quicker? Baking them?? Help!

I can't wait to try these!! I want to perfect the lime ones, because limes are my *FAV* maybe a dash of salt will help!! I bet the syrup could be added to plain yogurt or cream cheese for an awesome dip for fruit or cinnamon chips :) or Cheese Cake!... Is there such a thing as a margarita cheese cake?... there I go....can't wait... CAN"T WAIT!!! ;)

I want to try then but you don't say how much water to use when you boil the sugar and what do you have three separate sugar amounts for? Two cups to use in the water one cup to toss and what is the other one cup for?

Anonymous: When you boil them the first time it does not matter how much water that you use, enough to cover them and a bit of extra is ok. When you simmer them in the water the second time it is 2 cups of water to 1 cup of sugar. The second cup of sugar is for tossing them in and there is no third cup. Enjoy!

I am thinking of making these in big batches so I can hand them out as Christmas gifts to neighbors. The question I have is...do you think that it would hinder the cooking of the oranges if I boiled (maybe slices from 20 oranges) them all in one pot or smaller batches? Thanks!

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I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.